Early Career

Kelso, born on April 4, 1957 was an American thoroughbred race horse and is considered to be among the best racehorses of the Twentieth century. Indeed, in the Blood-Horse list of the top 100 horses of the Twentieth Century, Kelso ranks 4th, behind only Man 0 'War (1st), Secretariat (2nd), and Citation (3rd). April 4 is the 94th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (95th in leap years). ... 1957 (MCMLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Thoroughbred is a horse breed developed in 18th century England when English mares were bred with imported Arabian stallions to create a distance racer. ... Horse-racing is an equestrian sporting activity which has been practiced over the centuries; the chariot races of Roman times were an early example, as was the contest of the steeds of the god Odin and the giant Hrungnir in Norse mythology. ... Man O War, born March 29, 1917 at Nursery Stud farm in Lexington, Kentucky, United States - died November 1, 1947 at Faraway Farm in Lexington, Kentucky, affectionately known as Big Red, [1] is considered by many to be the greatest US thoroughbred racehorse of all time. ... 1999 stamp honoring Secretariat His only point of reference is himself. ... Citation (April 11, 1945 - August 8, 1970) was a thoroughbred American horse-racing champion. ...

Kelso with Eddie Arcaro

But Kelso did not start out in glory. His breeding was less than stellar. Born at Claiborne Farm near Paris, Kentucky, Kelso was sired by a very good racehorse, but a sire of no real reputation, Your Host, out of the dam, Maid of Flight, with no reputation at all. Kelso was her first foal, a bit scrawny, a bit runty, and quite the handful. His owner, Allaire du Pont (the wife of Richard C. du Pont), had him gelded before he ever set hoof on a track in the hopes of calming him down. By all reports, it did not work. Kelso was never a "nice" horse. In any case, regardless of his dam and sire, he was a maternal grandson of U.S. Triple Crown champion, Count Fleet who is ranked at number 5 by Blood-Horse. Image File history File links Kelso_Arcaro. ... Image File history File links Kelso_Arcaro. ... Claiborne Farm is located in Paris, Kentucky, USA, and is one of the most famous thoroughbred horse farms in the state and in the nation. ... Paris is a city located in Bourbon County, Kentucky. ... Richard Chichester du Pont Richard Chichester du Pont (January 2, 1911 - September 11, 1943) was an American businessman and an aviation and glider pioneer who was a member of the prominent Du Pont family. ... The Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing (Triple Crown for short, but the term is also used in other sports, and thus the full name should be used when it could cause confusion) consists of three races for three-year-old thoroughbred horses. ... Count Fleet, born March 24, 1940 at Stoner Creek Stud farm in Paris, Kentucky, United States and died there on December 3, 1973, was a thoroughbred racehorse and Triple Crown champion in 1943. ...

Trained by Dr. John Lee and racing for Mrs. du Pont's Bohemia Stables, Kelso made his two-year-old debut on September 4, 1959 at Atlantic City Race Course, at that time one of the country's premier tracks. Ridden by John Block, Kelso's first race was an ordinary maiden event...which he won. Even so, his odds weren't much when he made his second start ten days later and came in second. He was the favorite in his third race, which came rapidly on the heels of his first two, and again he came second. That was the entirety of his first year of racing. September 4 is the 247th day of the year (248th in leap years). ... 1959 (MCMLIX) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... John Rusling Block was born in 1935 in Galesburg, Illinois. ...

Championship Victories

His third year did not start until after the Triple Crown^[1] races of 1960 had come and gone. Dr. John Lee had also come and gone. Kelso's new trainer was Carl Hanford and his first start for Hanford was at Monmouth Park. He won. After that, he won eight times in nine starts: a mile event at Aqueduct Racetrack in a record for a three-year-old at that distance, the Choice Stakes, the Jerome Handicap, the Discovery Handicap, the Lawrence Realization Stakes, the Hawthorne Gold Cup, and the Jockey Club Gold Cup, this last race against older horses. In the Lawrence Realization Stakes he equaled Man 0 'War's time of 2.40 & four/fifths for a mile and five/eights. The Triple Crown is a term sometimes used to describe the three-tiered crown or tiara formerly used by popes. ... Monmouth Park Racetrack is a one-mile oval track for thoroughbred racing in Oceanport, New Jersey. ... Aqueduct Racetrack, known as the Big A, is a horse racetrack in the neighborhood of Ozone Park in Queens, New York. ... The Jerome Handicap is a race for thoroughbred horses. ... The Jockey Club Gold Cup is a prestigious thoroughbred horse race open to horses three years old and upward, established in 1919. ... Man O War, born March 29, 1917 at Nursery Stud farm in Lexington, Kentucky, United States - died November 1, 1947 at Faraway Farm in Lexington, Kentucky, affectionately known as Big Red, [1] is considered by many to be the greatest US thoroughbred racehorse of all time. ...

1960 was the first year Kelso was voted three-year-old Champion Male and Horse of the Year. Horse of the Year is the highest honor given in American thoroughbred horse racing. ...

In 1961, he won seven of nine starts. That year he was voted Champion Older Horse and again Horse of the Year. Image File history File links Kelso-running3. ... 1961 (MCMLXI) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ...

Career Highlights:

• 1960 Champion 3-yr-old Male, Horse of the Year
• 1961 Champion Handicap Male, Horse of the Year
• 1962 Champion Handicap Male, Horse of the Year
• 1963 Champion Handicap Male, Horse of the Year
• 1964 Champion Handicap Male, Horse of the Year
• Only 5-time Horse of the Year in history
• First 3-yr-old named Horse of the Year who didn't win a Triple Crown race.
• Won 5 consecutive editions of the Jockey Club Gold Cup, the most consecutive wins of a major stakes by any horse in history.
• Won 3 consecutive editions of the Woodward Stakes.
• Three-time winner of the Whitney Stakes.
• Two-time winner of the Aqueduct Stakes.
• Two-time winner of the Suburban Handicap.
• Won 8 of 9 races (7 stakes) in 1960.
• Won 8 consecutive races (last 6 of 1960 & first 2 of 1961).
• Carried 130 pounds on 24 occasions, winning 13, placing in 5, and finishing third once.
• Won 39 of 63 starts (62%).
• Finished in the money in 53 of 63 starts (84%).
• In 1961, joined Whisk Broom and Tom Fool as the third in history to win the New York Triple of the Metropolitan, Suburban (135 lbs),and Brooklyn (136 lbs) handicaps.
• Set a new American record for 1 1/2 miles while on turf in the 1964 Washington D.C. International.

1962 (MCMLXII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1963 (MCMLXIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (the link is to a full 1963 calendar). ... For the Nintendo 64 emulator, see 1964 (Emulator). ... The Woodward Stakes is a race for thoroughbred horses three-year-olds and up. ... The Whitney Handicap is an American Grade 1 handicap race for thoroughbred racehorses three years of age and older run at a distance of 1 1/8 miles. ... The Suburban Handicap is a Grade I stakes race for Thoroughbred horses aged three and older. ... Tom Fool (1949–1976) was an American thoroughbred horse racing champion. ...

A Career that Lasted

Unlike all too many of today's top racehorses, Kelso did not ignite racing in his second and third year only to disappear to a stud farm. This great gelding^[2] competed for eight seasons, from 1959 to 1966. As his career raced on, so did his popularity. Huge crowds flocked to see him. Kelso competed on fourteen tracks, won in six states, smashed any amount of records, won an unprecedented number of awards, and eventually became as beloved a horse as any who ever lived. Image File history File links Kelsohead. ... Image File history File links Kelsohead. ... A gelding is a castrated animal—specifically, a castrated male horse. ... 1959 (MCMLIX) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1966 (MCMLXVI) was a common year starting on Saturday (the link is to a full 1966 calendar). ...

Retirement

In 1965, during a workout he suffered a hairline fracture of the inside sesamoid of his right hind foot. Though he'd planned for another year's racing, Hanford retired him at the age of nine. Kelso left the track as racing's all-time leading money winner with lifetime earnings of $1,977,896. These earnings held for a record 13 years. 1965 (MCMLXV) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1965 calendar). ... In anatomy, a sesamoid bone is a bone embedded within a tendon. ...

Of Kelso's sixty three starts, he won thirty nine, placed twelve times, and had two shows. He was out of the money only ten times in his entire career.

Kelso's most frequent jockeys were Eddie Arcaro, Willie Shoemaker, and Milo Valezuela. Eddie Arcaro (February 19, 1916 - November 4, 1997) was born George Edward Arcaro in Cincinnati, Ohio, in the United States, the son of an impoverished taxi driver. ... William Lee Shoemaker, (August 19, 1931 - October 12, 2003) was an American jockey. ...

As a gelding Kelso could not be retired to stud. Instead, he went on to a second career as a hunter and a show jumper. In 1967, he was elected to the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame. Look up Stud in Wiktionary, the free dictionary Stud may refer to: Stud (animal), a male animal employed for breeding. ... Show jumping is a form of competition in which horses are jumped over a course of fences, low walls, and other obstacles (e. ... 1967 (MCMLXVII) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame was founded in 1950 in Saratoga Springs, New York, to honor the achievements of American thoroughbred race horses, jockeys, and trainers. ...

Kelso died on October 16, 1983. October 16 is the 289th day of the year (290th in Leap years). ... 1983 (MCMLXXXIII) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Further reading

• Kelso : Thoroughbred Legends by Steve Haskin (2003) Eclipse Press ISBN 1581501013.
• Thoroughbred Champions Top 100 Racehorses of the 20th Century (2005) The Blood Horse ISBN 1581500246

Footnotes

1. ^  - A male horse who has been castrated for any number of reasons. In Kelso's case, it was cantankerousness.
2. ^  That year, Venetian Way won the Kentucky Derby, Bally Ache won the Preakness, and Celtic Ash won the Belmont Stakes.

Churchill Downs ractrack, 2004 The Kentucky Derby is a stakes race for three-year-old thoroughbred horses, staged yearly in Louisville, Kentucky on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. ... The Preakness Stakes is a classic 1 3/16 mile (1. ... The Belmont Stakes is a prestigious horse race held yearly in June at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. ...

External links

• Kelso's pedigree
• Jockey Gold Cup Charts. Note the winner from 1960 through 1964.
• Kelso's page - The National Museum of Horse Racing and Hall of Fame
• Unofficial Thoroughbred Hall of Fame